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Hays County health official urges Kyle leaders to partner on mental health, vaccinations and mosquito surveillance
Summary
Hays County health department manager Matthew Gonzalez told Kyle City Council the county’s 2023 community health assessment found gaps in primary care access, rising syphilis rates and mental-health needs and urged municipal partnerships, mobile services and grant collaboration to serve a fast-growing population.
Matthew Gonzalez, manager of the Hays County Health Department, told Kyle City Council on Aug. 20 that the county’s updated public‑health strategic plan and a 2023 community health assessment point to several priorities for growing cities in the region. Gonzalez said per‑capita local public‑health spending is low, the county faces workforce and data limitations, and mental‑health and maternal supports are high priorities.
“By 2030 we’re expected to reach 346,000 people,” Gonzalez said, urging municipalities to partner on outreach and grant applications. He outlined services the department provides — vaccinations, TB screening, infectious‑disease epidemiology, mobile vaccination and STI exams — and described an expansion of staff, including disease‑intervention specialists and a behavioral‑health coordinator funded in part by opioid settlement funds and state DSHS grants that run through 2026.
Gonzalez also flagged infectious‑disease trends: gonorrhea has trended downward, while syphilis is rising locally and statewide, posing particular risks in pregnancy. He said the county’s arbovirus surveillance program collects mosquito trap samples on a rotating basis and that the department can advise cities interested in mosquito abatement contracts.
Council members asked how the county’s mobile health unit and mental‑health outreach could pair with municipal‑level efforts. Council members suggested the city explore funding and partnership options and consider directing limited city resources to amplify county programs rather than duplicate services. Gonzalez recommended the city request technical support, participate in outreach events and help with data sharing to better target local needs.
Next steps: Gonzalez said the county will provide more granular demographics and service‑area data to help Kyle officials identify where to direct outreach, and councilmembers urged staff to pursue closer collaboration on wastewater monitoring, mental‑health grant opportunities and vector control planning.
